Corbitts - dealers and auctioneers of postage stamps of the world, coins, medals and banknotes, autographs, postcards and cigarette cards.

The auctioneers exercise all reasonable care to ensure that all statements as to cancellation, centering, colour, condition, date of issue or of postal markings, gum, margins, paper, perforation, printing, provenance, quality, sheet position, status, usage, watermark, etc. in lot descriptions are reliable and accurate, and that each item is genuine unless the contrary is indicated. However, the statements are not intended to be, are not and are not to be taken to be, statements of fact or representation of fact in relation to the lot. They are statements of the opinion of the auctioneers, and attention is particularly drawn to clause 5 of the PHILATELIC AUCTIONEERS' STANDARD TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF SALE (1973 REVISION) set out below. Comments and opinions, concerning the characteristics mentioned above, which may be found in or on lots as notes, lists, catalogue prices, writing-up or any other means of expression, do not constitute part of lot description and are not to be taken as such unless they are made or specifically verified by the auctioneers.

Clause 1(a) Each lot is put up subject to any reserve price imposed by the vendor.(b) Subject to sub-clause (a) of this clause, the highest bidder for each lot shall be the purchaser thereof.(c) If any dispute arises as to the highest bidder the auctioneer shall have absolute discretion to determine the dispute and may put up again and re-sell the lot in respect of which the dispute arises.

Clause 2(a) The bidding and advances shall be regulated by and at the absolute discretion of the auctioneer and he shall have the right to refuse any bid or bids.
NOTE: Where an agent bids, even on behalf of a disclosed client, the auctioneer nevertheless has the right at his discretion to refuse any such bid.(b) The purchaser of each lot shall immediately on its sale if required by the auctioneer give to him the name and address of the purchaser and pay to the auctioneer at his discretion the whole or part of the purchase money. If the purchaser of any lot fails to comply with any such requirement the auctioneer may put up again and re sell the lot; if upon such re sale a lower price is obtained than was obtained on the first sale the purchaser in default on the first sale shall make good the difference in price and expenses of re sale which shall become a debt due from him.(c) Where an agent purchases on behalf of an undisclosed client such agent shall be personally liable for payment of the purchase money to the auctioneer and for safe delivery of the lot to the said client.

Clause 3(a) The auctioneer reserves the right to bid on behalf of clients and vendors, but shall not be liable for errors or omissions in executing instructions to bid.(b) The auctioneer reserves the right before or during a sale to group together lots belonging to the same vendor, to split up and to withdraw any lot or lots at the auctioneer's absolute discretion and without giving any reason in any case.(c) The auctioneer acts as agent only, and therefore shall not be liable for any default of the purchaser or vendor.

Clause 4(a) Each lot shall be at the purchaser's risk from the fall of the hammer and shall be paid for in full before delivery and taken away at his expense by a purchaser in the United Kingdom within 7 days from the date of sale and by a purchaser overseas within 14 days from the date of sale or such longer time as shall be agreed in writing between the auctioneer and the purchaser.(b) If any purchaser fails to pay in full for any lot within the time stated in sub-clause (a) of this clause such lot may at any time thereafter at the auctioneer's discretion be put up for sale by auction again or sold privately; if upon such re-sale a lower price is obtained than was obtained on the first sale the purchaser in default on the first sale shall make good the difference in price and the expenses of re-sale which shall become a debt due from him.(c) Interest shall be payable by the purchaser on any overdue account, but the auctioneer shall have a discretion to waive payment of the interest.

Clause 5(a) Each lot is sold as - (i) genuine unless otherwise described in the sale catalogue or by the auctioneer, and (ii) correctly described. Any certificate forming part of the description of any lot will be included in the description.(b) A purchaser shall be at liberty to reject any lot if he - (i) gives the auctioneer written notice of intention to question the genuineness or, as the case may be, the accuracy of description of the lot within 7 days (or, in the case of an overseas purchaser, a reasonable time) from the date of sale; AND (ii) proves that the lot is not genuine or was incorrectly described; AND (iii) returns to the auctioneer within 30 days from the date of the sale the lot in the same condition as it was at the time of sale; provided that the auctioneer may, at his discretion, on receiving a request in writing from the purchaser, extend for a reasonable period the time for return of the lot to enable it to be submitted to expertisation.

NOTE: The onus of proving a lot to be not genuine or incorrectly described is on the purchaser. The inability of a recognised expert or an expert committee to express a definite opinion shall serve to discharge the onus on the purchaser and shall be a ground for rejecting the lot concerned.

(c) Where a lot has been submitted to expertisation, all costs of such expertisation shall be paid by the person who retains the certificate and item or items to which the certificate relates.(d) Where the purchaser of a lot discharges the onus and acts in accordance with sub-clause (b) of this clause, the auctioneer shall rescind the sale and repay to the purchaser the purchase money paid by him in respect of the lot.(e) No lot shall be rejected if, subsequent to the sale, it has been immersed in water, marked or treated by any other process unless the auctioneer's permission to subject the lot to such immersion or treatment has first been obtained in writing.(f) Any lot listed under "collections and various" or stated to comprise or contain a collection, issue or stamps which are undescribed shall be put up for sale not subject to rejection and shall be taken by the purchaser with all (if any) faults, lack of genuineness and errors of description and numbers of stamps in the lot, and the purchaser shall have no right to reject the lot; except that, notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this sub-clause, where before a sale a person intending to bid at the sale gives notice in writing to, and satisfies the auctioneer that any such lot contains any item or items undescribed in the sale catalogue and that person specifically describes that item or those items in that notice, then the item or those items shall, as between the auctioneer and that person, to be taken to form part of the description of the lot for the purpose of sub-clauses (a), (b) and (d) of this clause.(g) No lot illustrated on this Web Site or in the printed auction catalogue shall be rejected on the ground of cancellation, centring, margins, perforation or other characteristics clearly apparent from the illustration.

Special Clause
Owing to production methods, age and handling, stamps often have minor faults (which are normal). These will not be described. Covers etc. which have seen postal service will have wear and age appearance i.e. minor stains, crease, splits etc. If in doubt ask for inspection or a complete condition report.

Corbitts are members of: the Philatelic Traders Society, the American Stamp Dealers Association, and the American Philiatelic Society - Corbitts Stamp auctions

Terms and conditions - Coin auctions

(1)

Corbitts conducting these auctions act as agents on behalf of the seller. The contract of sale for any lot will be between the seller and the buyer.

(2)

The buyer of any lot will be the highest bidder. In the event of any dispute, the auctioneer shall have absolute discretion to settle the dispute as he thinks best; this may mean re-offering the lot for sale.

(3)

The auctioneer shall have absolute discretion to divide any lot, combine two or more lots or withdraw any lot or lots without giving any reason. In the case of a dispute, he may re-offer a lot for sale. The auctioneer also has the right to refuse any bid or bids without giving a reason.

(4)

Corbitts shall have absolute discretion to refuse admission to their premises or attendance at their auction of any person they deem unsuitable, without giving any reason for, or prior notice of, their auction.

(5)

The minimum increment between bids will normally be 5%. The auctioneer has the right to refuse any bid which is not in line with this increase. He also has absolute discretion to vary this increment as he sees fit.

(6)

All lots are subject to a Buyer's Premium of 15%, inclusive of VAT, payable by all buyers.

(7)

Each bidder shall be deemed to act as principal unless Corbitts acknowledges in writing prior to the auction that he acts as agent for a named third-party principal. For bidders unable to attend the auction in person, commissions will be executed free-of-charge. Such bids must be written and must be received at least 24 hours before the sale begins. Corbitts cannot guarantee to execute bids received less than 24 hours before the sale. 'Buy' bids will not be accepted. Corbitts shall not be liable for any errors or omissions in executing such commissions.

(8)

All buyers must, if requested, notify their name and address to the auctioneer and, if required, provide additional proof of identification, bank references or other credit references. All buyers must pay the full purchase price, at the point of collection of purchases, or a deposit as may be determined at the auctioneer's discretion, unless Corbitts has previously arranged credit terms. Seven working days must be allowed for clearance of personal cheques before delivery can be made unless a prior agreement has been reached. A 1.35% surcharge will be applied to all credit card payments.

(9)

Ownership of lots does not pass to the buyer until Corbitts has received payment in full.

(10)

All lots, however, are held to be at the buyer's risk from the fall of the hammer. All lots shall be removed by the buyer within seven working days after the date of the sale. Any lots not so removed may become liable to removal, insurance and storage charges. Such lots may, at the auctioneer's discretion, be re-offered for sale at auction or by private treaty without further notice to the buyer.

(11)

All lots are offered for sale subject to the starting price listed in the catalogue.

(12)

(a) Lots are sold as shown with all faults, imperfections and errors of description and lack of authenticity. Neither Corbitts nor the vendor shall give any warranty to any buyer in respect of any lot or be liable for any fault or error of description or lack of genuineness or authenticity of any lot. All statements as to items sold, whether made in catalogues, during the course of the auction or otherwise, are statements of opinion only and are not and shall not be taken to be statements or representations of fact. Corbitts reserve the right in forming their opinion to consult and rely upon any expert or authority considered by them to be reliable.

(b) Notwithstanding the foregoing, if any lot, other than a miscellaneous item not individually described in the catalogue, should be proved by the buyer to be not genuine or authentic, or to have been wrongly described in any material respect, the buyer may reject the same provided that he shall have given notice of his intention so to do and shall have returned the same to Corbitts within seven days from, and in the same condition as at, the date of sale.The onus of proving a lot to be not genuine or authentic or to have been so wrongly described shall lie with the buyer. Proof of the inability of any recognised expert or authority to express a definite option shall not discharge such onus. If the buyer shall discharge such onus, the auctioneers shall rescind the sale and repay to the buyer the price paid by him. Save as provided herein, Corbitts shall not under any circumstances whatsoever be liable for any costs, expenses or damages (whether direct, indirect, special or consequential) incurred by the buyer in respect of any lot, whether or not as a result of any fault, imperfection, error or description or lack of genuineness or authenticity, including but not limited to loss of any kind of profit whatsoever.

(13)

Save as provided in the preceeding paragraph of these conditions buyers must satisfy themselves as to the accuracy of their purchases at the time of delivery. Corbitts cannot be held responsible for any discrepancy which might be discovered after the lots have been removed from either the auction room or the auctioneers' premises.

(14)

As stated in paragraph (1), Corbitts acts solely as agent between buyer and seller and shall not be held responsible for any default by either party or for any action or claim that may arise in connection with any lot.

(15)

Any part of the purchase price still outstanding after the auction, in line with the terms of paragraph (8), shall be paid in full within thirty days of the date of the auction. Without prejudice to any other rights, Corbitts reserves the right to charge interest on any overdue payment at a rate of 1.5% per month. In the event that Corbitts shall have paid the vendor (normally 35 days after sale) and part of the purchase price is still outstanding, title to the lot will pass to Corbitts. Corbitts shall then have the right to sell any other goods belonging to the buyer and held by Corbitts for whatever reason at such price that Corbitts, in its absolute discretion, thinks fit. The buyer shall also reimburse Corbitts for any additional costs incurred in this process.

(16)

Buyers accepting commissions from third parties do so at their own risk. They remain responsible to Corbitts for full settlement according to these conditions.

(17)

By making a bid, the buyer acknowledges his acceptance of these conditions and agrees to be bound by them.

(18)

If any buyer fails to comply with any of these conditions, the lot or lots in respect of which the failure is made may at the discretion of Corbitts be put up again and re-sold. The damages recoverable from the defaulting buyer shall include, but not be limited to, the auctioneers' expenses and commission in respect of the resale and the amount (if any) by which the price obtained on the resale is exceeded by that obtained on the first sale.

(19)

A variation of these conditions shall only be binding on Corbitts and the vendor if it is made in writing and signed by a duly authorised representative of Corbitts.

(20)

These conditions shall take effect and be constructed in accordance with the provisions of English law.